scary things

wrote another story, one that Aja said was "awesome and scary"

and now I'm thinking about scary things.

I've never been good at writing truly frightening stories, or at least not stories that I find truly frightening, because the things that actually frighten me are things I don't want to think about. However, when I do try to frighten I have a couple of simple rules.

Monsters aren't scary. Big strong demons that kill aren't scary.

What's scary is what people are willing to do if they don't think anyone's watching or they don't care if anyone's watching, or if they like it when people watch. What's scary is seeing something horrifying, truly disgusting, the kind of thing that is called "inhuman", and understanding that the person who did it was genetically almost exactly like you, was raised in a household fairly close to your own, in a culture fairly close to your own. The most disturbing thing is when the monstrosity comes from someone entirely, completely human.

Because that's the ultimate fear. Both of the ultimate fears.

The first fear is that someone you have always known and always trusted could turn on you and do these terrible things to you.

The second fear is that you could turn on those you love and do these things.

The first is a reflection of the second, and its scary because civilized feelings are learned. Underneath them is an animal who has evolved cruelty and creativity as survival traits.

Zombies and vampires aren't scary because they're monsters. They're scary because they were human. Werewolves aren't scary because they're wolves, they're scary because they were men.

The most terrifying thing we have ever experienced is a human being with the inhibitions turned off.

You wake up in the middle of the night to the sight and smell of blood. Something is dead in here, and there's a killer in the room. Is it more scary if you're next, or if the killer is you?

That's where good scary stories should be. Not the terror from outside, but the voice in the back of your mind.